Lesser Known Facts

[Mucho]

The Hundred Years War last 116 years.

 

[rocadelpunk]

"it can also be used as a hat"

 

[fitzov]

vitamin U is found in cabbage and is good for ulcers

 

[IdioticBuffoon]

It's impossible to keep your eyes open when sneezing.

 

[91TTZ]

Originally posted by: Spacehead
Alesha Oreskovich is the only Playboy playmate to mention Heisenburg's Uncertanty Principle on her data sheet.

Although she believed it referred to the uncertainty of finding a good pair of shoes in her closet to match her outfit.

 

[AnyMal]

Every human embryo is a female during the first two weeks of development,

 

[Trevelyan]

Originally posted by: Brutuskend

Originally posted by: compuwiz1
Spent energy never really leaves the earth, it just changes forms.

And since the human brain works on chemically produced energy, some part of you continues on after death.

Yep, but it becomes less and less useful!

 

[Strk]

The male-platypus is the only venomous mammal.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Originally posted by: Brutuskend
If you are average, the length between your wrist bone and your elbow is the same length as your foot!

And while we're on elbows, it is impossable to LICK your elbow!

(unless you are Gene Simmons)

I'm pretty sure Richard Simmons probably could too....

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: LoKe

Originally posted by: Brutuskend
If you are average, the length between your wrist bone and your elbow is the same length as your foot!

The golden ratio. There are many, many more occurences of this.

Often, in nature, because of certain types of growth, the golden ratio & the fibonacci sequence can be found. However, people really seem to get too carried away with finding things approximately equal to the golden ratio that really have nothing to do with the golden ratio... this is one of them.

 

[Jeff7]

Originally posted by: IdioticBuffoon
It's impossible to keep your eyes open when sneezing.

Not true. I've done it already.

The male-platypus is the only venomous mammal.

Not true. Some shrews also are venomous.

 

[Rayden]

Here are some more.

There are impurities/imperfections in the bottom of wine glasses to create the bubbles. Bubbles need something to form on.

Covered bridges are covered so that horses will not see the river below them and become scared. The entrances are often shaped like barns to make the horses more comfortable. I learned that today after visiting the covered bridge capitol of the world and seeing 10+ covered bridges.

 

[Rayden]

Originally posted by: compuwiz1
Spent energy never really leaves the earth, it just changes forms.

Technically energy is constantly leaving the "Earth." It radiates away. You would be correct saying that energy never leaves the universe.

 

[AnyMal]

Originally posted by: Rayden

Originally posted by: compuwiz1
Spent energy never really leaves the earth, it just changes forms.

Technically energy is constantly leaving the "Earth." It radiates away. You would be correct saying that energy never leaves the universe.

Can energy exist in a vacuum of space?

 

[lightweight]

Keeping your fingers on home row, Stewardesses is the longest word in the English language you can type with one hand.

 

[Nerva]

Originally posted by: chuckywang

Originally posted by: Soccer55
City College of New York is the only team in college basketball history to win both the NIT and the NCAA Tournament in the same season (1950). Bradley University lost to CCNY in the finals of both tournaments.


-Tom

Are they now NYU?

nope, still ccny, except it kind of sucks

 

[HumblePie]

I can lick my elbow and not just the inside of it. Then again, not many people can twist their whole shoulder out of socket like me to do it either. I used to be able to do it with both arms, but after an accident with my right shoulder which caused some scar tissue I can longer pop it out like my left shoulder.

As for lesser known facts....

Thomans Crapper did NOT invent the flushing toilet.

He and his company owned several patents to the flushing toilet though. His company was in the business of producing toilets. However, when many American Soldiers went over to Europe for the wars, they noticed on many toilets the imprint of "T. Crapper" which meant is was made by Thomas Crapper's company. Later it became associated with the actual toilet. What's funny, is that the word CRAP used for defication was used long before Thomas Crapper was born but the association with the toilet didn't come about until after Thomas Crapper started making toilets. Man, that guy must have had it rough.

 

[DivideBYZero]

Originally posted by: AnyMal
You will not find any turkeys in Turkey.

Incorrect.

 

[HumblePie]

Originally posted by: AnyMal
Every human embryo is a female during the first two weeks of development,

Incorrect. During that time, every embryo is the same. There is no male, there is no female. A human embry looks like a chicken embryo which looks like every other embryo for higher level life forms on the planet. It's not until hormones and genetic patterns take root afterward that anything is decided on the state of that embryo of what it will become.

 

[loic2003]

GHOTI can actually be pronounced 'fish':

enouGH
wOmen (plural)
emaginaTIon

 

[J0hnny]

Bangkok's real name is:

Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Ayuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Piman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit

It's in the guiness book of records as the longest city name.

 

[loic2003]

Originally posted by: AnyMal

Originally posted by: Rayden

Originally posted by: compuwiz1
Spent energy never really leaves the earth, it just changes forms.

Technically energy is constantly leaving the "Earth." It radiates away. You would be correct saying that energy never leaves the universe.

Can energy exist in a vacuum of space?

The sun does a good job of keeping us warm, despite being millions of miles away in space.

What about all the light pollution that's visible from space? Photons are energy and are constantly leaving the earth.

 

[loic2003]

There are no green mammals

 

[DaShen]

Originally posted by: Rayden
I was talking to my friend today and he mentioned that while "fish" is used to describe multiple fish of the same species, "fishes" is used to describe multiple fish of which there are at least two species.

So if you had 3 goldfish, you have 3 fish. If you had 2 goldfish and a salmon, you have 3 fishes.


What sort of facts do you guys know that most people aren't aware of? Please limit responses to facts, nothing too opinionated, and nothing personal to your or your situation.

"I am sitting in the dark without any clothes" may not be known by many people, but who its not that interesting.

I didn't know that. "The More You Know"

 

[loic2003]

The Kiwi (Bird) technically has the shoterst beak of all birds. This is because the length of a bird's bill is measured from the tip to the nostril, but the kiwi's nostrils are situated pretty much on the tip of their beaks.

Kiwis have developed to become strong sneezers due to their nostrils often becoming clogged up.